Kansas bakery owner publicly claims Sen. Roger Marshall left a near $700 bill unpaid for 6 years. He pays $1,300 after the post goes viral

A bakery owner in Kansas went public with claims that Sen. Roger Marshall’s campaign never paid for treats ordered six years earlier. Marshall then sent $1,300 to the business on Saturday after the matter drew attention.

Holly Thomas runs Holly’s Sweet Treats in Hutchinson, Kan. She said the 2020 Senate campaign placed an order of cookies, cupcakes, and brownies for Marshall’s Republican primary election watch party and left the bill unpaid.

Marshall stated that he did not know about the outstanding invoice. He said the campaign took steps to resolve it once the claims came to his attention.

Campaign issues double payment and shares receipt after owner’s public post

Marshall addressed the situation in a social media post on Saturday. “We have absolutely no idea how this happened, but rest assured as soon as it became known to us, we immediately attempted to contact the business in order to apologize, and we have repaid the bill from 2020, double,” he wrote.

Along with the message, the senator posted a screenshot of a digital receipt. The image showed the $1,300 transfer to the bakery.

Thomas described the unpaid amount as $678.75. She said the timing hit hard because her business had only recently opened and was dealing with the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a Facebook post, Thomas asked, “Do you know why I will never vote for Roger Marshall?” She continued, “Because six years ago, when I was a brand-new small business owner, his campaign ordered cookies and treats from my bakery for his primary election watch party. And I never got paid.”

An invoice she shared listed the breakdown as $375 for custom sugar cookies, $75 for cupcakes, and $175 for fudge brownies.

Thomas said she tried for almost a year to get the money. She explained that she called and emailed the campaign multiple times but never heard back.

“Not only was I just starting out, but we were also in the middle of COVID, when small businesses everywhere were struggling just to keep their doors open. Every single dollar mattered,” she wrote. “Those cookies and treats cost money to make, employees’ time to prepare, and resources that my little business couldn’t afford to give away.”

Marshall, who is a physician, won his Senate seat in 2020. His medical practice has drawn prior attention for its work to collect unpaid bills from patients. Marshall has faced questions over his record on medical debt, such as when he was cut off by shame on you chants at a Kansas debate and defended suing 700 patients.